Protiv closes on $2.4M in pre-seed funding

Protiv, a performance pay platform designed for construction, landscaping and service companies, has closed $2.4 million in pre-seed funding.

The round was co-led by Lightbank and Las Olas Venture Capital, with participation from Parameter Ventures and Early Light Ventures. 

In 2023, its first year in operations, Protiv helped anyone from small landscaping companies and mid-size trade contractors to large civil construction companies facilitate almost $1 million in worker bonuses in 34 states.

Protiv’s co-founders, Michael Fortinberry and David Franco, both construction industry veterans, say they created the platform to align desired business outcomes with meaningful employee bonuses, creating a culture shift for contractors. 

“Our major focus at Protiv is improving the lives of hourly workers because they are literally the people driving the construction industry and our economy in general,” Franco says. "For far too long there has been a misalignment of incentives between workers and owners–a problem that has hindered wages, company culture, and growth. We plan to solve it."

Fortinberry and Franco built and tested Protiv on their own construction company. The Protiv team will use the proceeds of this investment to build additional product features and expand its go-to-market strategy.

“Our whole industry is struggling to find enough skilled workers, facing a labor shortfall of about 8%, with flat hourly pay models doing nothing to help,” Fortinberry says. “With Protiv, we are seeing 10% wage growth and a 12-15% production lift from the teams we already have. This functionally solves the US labor shortage problem and overcomes inflationary pressures on our workers."

“Protiv is well positioned to play a major role in solving labor and production issues in the US construction industry,“ says Mark Volchek, partner at Las Olas Venture Capital. “David and Michael invested 6 years into solving the incredibly complex legal, technical, and human challenges faced when disrupting the traditional hourly pay model.”